cover image: Homeobox transcription factor HbxA influences expression of over one thousand genes in the model fungus Aspergillus nidulans

20.500.12592/3fvvgou

Homeobox transcription factor HbxA influences expression of over one thousand genes in the model fungus Aspergillus nidulans

21 Jul 2023

In fungi, conserved homeobox-domain proteins are transcriptional regulators governing development. In Aspergillus species, several homeobox-domain transcription factor genes have been identified, among them, hbxA/hbx1. For instance, in the opportunistic human pathogen Aspergillus fumigatus, hbxA is involved in conidial production and germination, as well as virulence and secondary metabolism, including production of fumigaclavines, fumiquinazolines, and chaetominine. In the agriculturally important fungus Aspergillus flavus, disruption of hbx1 results in fluffy aconidial colonies unable to produce sclerotia. hbx1 also regulates production of aflatoxins, cyclopiazonic acid and aflatrem. Furthermore, transcriptome studies revealed that hbx1 has a broad effect on the A. flavus genome, including numerous genes involved in secondary metabolism. These studies underline the importance of the HbxA/Hbx1 regulator, not only in developmental processes but also in the biosynthesis of a broad number of fungal natural products, including potential medical drugs and mycotoxins. To gain further insight into the regulatory scope of HbxA in Aspergilli, we studied its role in the model fungus Aspergillus nidulans. Our present study of the A. nidulans hbxA-dependent transcriptome revealed that more than one thousand genes are differentially expressed when this regulator was not transcribed at wild-type levels, among them numerous transcription factors, including those involved in development as well as in secondary metabolism regulation. Furthermore, our metabolomics analyses revealed that production of several secondary metabolites, some of them associated with A. nidulans hbxAdependent gene clusters, was also altered in deletion and overexpression hbxA strains compared to the wild type, including synthesis of nidulanins A, B and D, versicolorin A, sterigmatocystin, austinol, dehydroaustinol, and three unknown novel compounds.

Authors

Sandesh S Pandit, Jinfang Zheng, Yanbin Yin, Sophie Lorber, Olivier Puel, Sourabh Dhingra, Eduardo A Espeso, Ana M Calvo

Bibliographic Reference
Sandesh S Pandit, Jinfang Zheng, Yanbin Yin, Sophie Lorber, Olivier Puel, et al.. Homeobox transcription factor HbxA influences expression of over one thousand genes in the model fungus Aspergillus nidulans. PLoS ONE, 2023, 18 (7), pp.e0286271. ⟨10.1371/journal.pone.0286271⟩. ⟨hal-04169210⟩
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0286271
HAL Collection
['Université Paul Sabatier - Toulouse III', 'Archive ouverte en agrobiosciences', 'Institut National de Recherche en Agriculture, Alimentation et Environnement', 'ToxAlim', 'INRAE Occitanie Toulouse', 'Toulouse - INP', 'Université Toulouse 3', 'Université Toulouse III / Toulouse INP', 'Réseau "Systèmes Agricoles et Eau"', 'Ecole Nationale Vétérinaire de Toulouse']
HAL Identifier
4169210
Institution
['Northern Illinois University', 'University of Nebraska–Lincoln', 'Université Toulouse III - Paul Sabatier', 'Institut National Polytechnique (Toulouse)', 'Institut National de Recherche pour l’Agriculture, l’Alimentation et l’Environnement', 'Clemson University', 'Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Cientificas = Spanish National Research Council']
Laboratory
ToxAlim
Published in
France

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